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What are your decoration mistakes?

Decorating a home on your own can be overwhelming. If you are not a designer (I’m not), there are basics things that you may not know and can lead to mistakes that you will regret in the future. In my opinion, the most important thing to ensure that you get your decoration right is to plan in advanced. Being a planner myself, this is very natural to me and I believe is the best way to guarantee the best results.

Today, I want to share some of the most popular mistakes that I’ve seen (done by myself, friends or family) and share some ideas on how to deal with them and some pictures of things done well. This is not an exhaustive list, so feel free to add your own mistakes in the comments!

Buy all your furniture at once

I was lucky enough to own the furniture in my previous rental. After almost two years of living in my owned place, I’ve been purchasing some things (side tables, a super cool blue chair) and I’m planning to replace others (dining table, chairs) but my original idea has been evolving after living here for some time. Buying everything at once can lead to wrong decisions based on immediate needs. My advice? Wait, if you can. Apparently, I could not wait to have book shelves in my home office and I ended up installing ones from Ikea that don’t fit at all, so I’ve been unhappy about the result since then. Now, I’m in the process of installing three perfect custom made shelves, just as I wanted. If you have to buy things, find something cheap and with basic /neutral design. Also, give yourself some time living in the space. Your original views/needs may change.

You all know I love white walls, but I can handle some touches of color or maybe an accent wall… But I’ve seen so many multicolored homes (peach living room, yellow corridor, purple master bedroom) where accent walls loose their sense. Also, how hard is to combine things with the wall color? Some of my friends decided about the painting first and then struggle to combine it with the furniture and textiles. White walls are easy (that’s why I love them) but, If you love color, you have to plan in advance. Reflect about the color palette that you want to use and stick to it.

I remember visiting the new rented place of a friend and leaving the place concerned about their decision because of the lack of space. Their previous apartment had an open concept living-kitchen space and they bought a huge sofa. It worked in that space but, when they move to a new place (bigger, but not open concept), the size of the sofa was too much. Literally, you had a very narrow walk space free in all the living space. I found it terribly oppressing. Big furniture can ruin your space and make it feel smaller, even if it’s not, so, please, take measurements and take them with you when buying furniture.

Another classic mistake that you can see everywhere is not enough natural light or light fixtures installed in the wrong places. For me, natural light needs to be the priority, so you need to remove all the obstacles to be able to use it as much as you can (furniture, thick curtains). Check this post to see some tricks o how to maximize natural light. Placing light fixtures can be tricky, but this infographic can help to understand the right type of lightning by room. In my previous rented apartment the placement was awful, but I didn’t want to spend money on fixing it (and I was not aware of this option). When I renovated my owned apartment, I carefully planned for the type of light I wanted and where to place it. So, again, it’s all about planning.